The present invention relates to a sagger loader and conveyor apparatus in general and more particularly to an apparatus and method for automatically conveying powder compacted articles or parts from a powder compacting press, or other apparatus, to saggers in which the parts are automatically loaded in a specific order, by rows for example, the saggers being on a moving conveyor belt.
Most articles and parts compacted of powder material in a powder compacting press are ultimately loaded in ceramic boats or saggers which are used for conveying the parts through a "firing" or sintering furnace. The parts, prior to sintering, are in a so-called "green" state wherein the particles of powder material are held in adhesion by a binder, and they are therefore relatively fragile.
Safe mechanical handling of such fragile parts presents many problems when the parts are transferred to a loading station, for example, where they are loaded in even rows in saggers and subsequently transported in the saggers to a sintering furnace. In view of the difficulties encountered in handling such fragile parts, manual sorting of the parts and manual loading of the saggers are often the solutions dictated by the necessity of avoiding damaging the parts when in their green and fragile state. The problem of appropriately loading saggers with fragile parts is further complicated by the fact that the parts must be placed in a regular order in the saggers, rather than in bulk at random, sometimes spaced apart in a row and the successive rows being also spaced apart, such as to allow the sintering operation to be effected under good conditions, with adequate air or inert gas circulation around the parts, without fusing the parts in a mass, and with even heating and cooling of the parts during travel through the sintering furnace and during any subsequent heat treatment operation, such as quenching for example.